Ten members of the "Naparamas" Local Force were beheaded and others wounded by terrorists on Monday in the village of Nancuale, in the Ancuabe district of Cabo Delgado province.

The deaths and injuries occurred after the Naparamas took hostages and banned members of the Armed Defense Forces of Mozambique (FADM) from patrolling in the villages of the district. 

He told MZNewsAccording to a military source close to the matter, given the movement of terrorists, the FADM deployed a group of soldiers from Macarara to the villages of Nanjua, Sange, Mesa, Maguiguane and Muaja along the National Road (EN1) to carry out combative patrols and pursue the terrorists.

"Arriving in the village of Maguiguane at around 5pm, the Armed Forces met with a group of 15 members of the Local Force, known as Naparamas, and gathered more information about enemy movements there," said the source.

The groups then agreed to continue their patrols to the village of Ungura and the surrounding area. The FADM then progressed to Mboge village, still in the Ancuabe district, for a meeting with local leaders.

However, yesterday morning (8am), the Naparamas in Mboge detained the FADM soldiers and summoned all the other Naparamas from the aforementioned villages. In this scenario, with the support of the local population, they forced the FADM members to hand over their weapons at the Nanjua Police Station and forbade them to continue their patrols, they demanded their withdrawal, claiming that they would guarantee security on their own.

A video to which we have had access shows the group of soldiers wielding weapons surrounded by Naparamas, following a road in broad daylight. It is not clear from the video when they were going to hand over their weapons or when they were leaving the village.

"After the FADM withdrew, the terrorists raided the village of Nancuale, where they beheaded 10 members of the Naparamas and wounded others," said the source.

The same national army source reaffirmed that the FADM remain committed to defending the homeland, and are still in contact with the local authorities to make the Naparamas understand that the mission of defending the homeland is a competent mission for the FADM.